First Premier Bank Gold MasterCard Review

The First Premier Bank Gold MasterCard is a card for people with reallybad credit. It's for people who absolutely can't get a credit card anywhere else, not even a secured credit card. The card can become very expensive, even before you make any purchases, so you have to be very diligent about taking care of the fees quickly in order to reduce the amount of interest you pay.

A High-Cost Credit Card for Vulnerable Consumers

At one point, the First Premier Bank Gold MasterCard had an astronomical 59.9 percent APR.

In 2009, the card made headlines for its 79 percent APR! While the APR has come down since then, it's still one of the industry's highest credit card APRs at 36 percent. That's higher than the penalty rate for some cards! First Premier wasn't doing cardholders any favors by lowering the APR as they made up for it by charging significantly higher fees. The first year cost of the card is $170 and the second year is $120.

There's a one-time processing fee of $95, which is assessed and must be paid in full before you open the credit card.

The credit card's annual fees are based on the amount of your credit limit and the higher your credit limit, the higher your annual fee. If your credit limit is $300, you'll also have to pay a $75 annual fee. This fee decreases to $45 each year for the second year onward. But, don't think your card gets any less expensive. In the second year, you'll be charged a minimum $6.25 monthly fee, which comes to $75 annually.

Low Starting Credit Limit With Lower Available Credit

To make matters worse, you can only get a maximum of $500 credit limit, which is eaten up with fees before you ever make your first purchase. Once the annual fee is added, you'll be left with very little available credit. A $300 credit limit will leave you with $225 of initial available credit.

A $400 initial credit limit will leave you with $300 initial available credit. A $500 credit limit will leave you with just $375 initial available credit. Considering it's best for your credit score to keep your credit card balance below 30 percent, it's better that you don't make any charges on the card until you've paid the fees.

You may not be stuck with the low credit limit forever, but each time your account is eligible and approved for a credit limit increase, First Premier will charge you a credit limit increase fee equal to 25 percent of the increase. For example, if you're approved for a $100.00 increase, you will be charged $25.00, which gets added to your balance (along with the other fees you pay in the first year). Cardholders are eligible for a credit limit increase 13 months after opening the account.

Beware: This card also goes under the names Centennial Gold and Aventium Gold.

First Premier Bank Gold MasterCard Pricing

Annual fee

$75 in the first year for $300 limit, $45 after that

$100 in the first year for $400 limit, $45 after that

$125 in the first year for $500 limit, $49 after that

Processing fee

$95

Monthly fee

$6.25 for $300 credit limit, waived in the first year

$6.25 for $400 credit limit, waived in the first year

$10.40 for $500 credit limit, waived in the first year

Late payment fee

$38

Returned item fee

$35

Credit limit increase fee

25 percent of the credit limit increase

Cash advance fee

$6.00 or 5 percent

Foreign transaction fee

3 percent

The First Premier Bank Gold MasterCard is one of the worst cards you can have, even if you have bad credit. The fees are incredibly high and cardholders consistently give this card horrible reviews. Instead of applying for this card, consider a secured credit card, like the Capital One Secured MasterCard, which has no annual fee, a 24.9 percent APR, and a minimum security deposit between $49 and $200 for a $200 credit limit.

If you do end up getting the First Premier Bank Gold MasterCard, know what you're getting into. Keep your expectations low and use this card only as a way to jumpstart your credit so you can qualify for something better.